Fearless
by Chavaleigh
Summary: After years of loss and suffering, a young Hebrew slave family is torn apart by violence and lust. It's up to the headstrong Nadia and her newfound friends to deliver their loved ones from evil. Very loosely based on TPoE, with original songs.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Birth

The golden sun rises over an ocean of sandy dunes. It casts shadows on the incomplete, brick structures looming in the distance, structures littered with rickety scaffolding. Even in this early hour, dozens of workers slowly trod towards their daily prison. Brown, barebacked men, dressed only in simple loincloths; ranging from scrappy young boys to emaciated and frail grandfathers. They are the Hebrews, children of God, slaves of Egypt.

But the next generation of Hebrew men will be nipped in the bud, stolen away from their cradles. Pharaoh Seti fears that the vast and ever multiplying race will eventually rise up and claim back their freedom. He has ordered that all Hebrew baby boys be killed. So it is written, so it shall be done.

A gentle breeze blows through the reeds that lined the banks of the mighty Nile River. A slender white crane dips its head into the waters, retrieving a squirming fish. A lazy crocodile cracks open one amber eye, observing the scene playing out before him. He lifts his head, basking in the rays of the dawning day.

A grand house stands proudly beyond the reeds, the home of Kek and his wife, Rabiah. The newly married couple lies sleeping in their bed, wrapped in the white cotton sheets. Kek is the son of a revered soldier who had worked his way up the social ladder and into the hearts of royalty. Like his father, Kek is charismatic and cunning. He has strong features and a tanned, clean shaven head. His wife Rabiah is the daughter of a wealthy merchant. She has an angular, hollow face and looks much older than her twenty years. On her bony wrists she wears dozens of ornate bracelets. Rabiah has a penchant for lavish things. The young couple sleeps on separate sides of the bed, for the marriage is fresh yet already cold. In the world of the upper class, money always comes before love.

But let us go beyond the glamor of the mansion, beyond the quiet beauty of the Nile, beyond the majesty of the brick laden sculptures and temples. Let us go to a humble dwelling, no more than a shack, with mud brick walls and a sagging thatched roof.

A sharp cry of pain rings through the room. A young woman lays on the dirt floor, naked from the waist down. Tears seep from her large, hazel eyes; her wild black hair is drenched with sweat. Her swollen belly heaves with every labored breath. Two older women tend to her, one clasps her hand, the other kneels between the young woman's legs.

"Just breathe. It will all be over soon Pella." whispers the woman holding her hand. The younger woman glances up, her eyes full of fear.

"I've never been so scared in my life. What if it's...?" The older woman brings a finger to Pella's lips.

"God knows what he's doing, you'll see." she hushes. The second woman looks up. "You're almost there, one more big push!"

Pella clenches her jaw and pushes with all her might. An agonized scream escapes her lips.

Then the shrill cry of a newborn fills the room.

"What is it?" weakly squeaks Pella.

"A little girl!" announces the second woman.

"Oh thank God! Let me see her, let me see my baby." gasps the new mother. The older woman holds up the shiny child and passes her to Pella. She cradles the wailing baby in her shaking arms, then shrieks again. "I thought it was over!"

"Looks like there's another." mutters the second woman. The two older women exchange worried glances.

The first woman takes Pella's face in her hands. "Look, I don't know how this will end, but just focus on getting this baby out, alright?" The young woman whimpers and nods, clutching her newborn daughter to her breast. The minutes drag by. With a final, forceful push, the second baby enters the world.

Silence. "A boy..." the second woman's voice trails off.

The little boy begins to cry. So does his mother.

"What are we going to do? They're going to take him away! They're going to kill my baby!" wails Pella. She reaches for the second baby and fiercely grabs him. "We've got to do something, we've got to save him somehow!" She clings to her twin babies and tries to stand, but ultimately fails. The first woman holds her down.

"Pella, you're too weak. There's nothing anyone can do." says the older woman, "The birth of a son was always such a happy occasion, but in these times..."

Suddenly, two guards burst in through the door. "Is this the home of the slave girl Pella?" they bark. The young mother bites her lip and glares at the men, the same men who had been keeping a watchful eye on her growing stomach.

The taller guard pushes the older women out of the way, while the stouter one reaches for the babies and spreads apart their squirming legs. He smiles. "A girl and a boy. At least you get to keep one." he laughs. He greedily snatches away the baby boy.

Pella quickly hands the girl to one of the older women. With what little strength she has, she lunges at the guards. She digs her nails into the stout guard's leg. "Please don't hurt my baby! Please, I beg of you!" she cries. She reaches for her son, but the tall guard smacks her hand away and the pair storm out the door and into the street. Oblivious the own pain and to the fact that she is half-naked, Pella crawls on her hands and knees after them.

"Stop, please!" she shrieks. She can hear the cries of her infant son. With a great deal of pain, she stands up and hobbles towards the guards and attempts to save the baby one last time. With one powerful swoop, the tall guard grabs Pella by her hair and holds her upright. She struggles against his grip and reaches for her son, tears rolling down her cheeks.

The stout guard laughs once again. "You know, this little bastard was destined to drown, but I think we need to teach this Hebrew bitch a lesson right here, right now." He grabs the screaming newborn by the ankles and smashes him into the wall of the shack. The most horrifying sound Pella has or will ever hear echoes through the air. A spot of bright red blood is visible on the baby's head. He cries no more.

"NO!" she shrieks, but it is too late. It's all over. The tall guard lets go of Pella's hair and she sinks to the ground, sobbing. They carry away the dead baby like the carcass of a goose or a hare. The older women rush out and help the hysterical Pella back into the shack. They hand her the surviving baby, the little girl. Pella clings to the baby and shakes, her whole body wracked by the uncontrollable sobs.

She stays like that for hours, crying, holding on to her baby for dear life. That horrible sound rings through her head, over and over. She had seen evil in its purest form that day, a day which should have been filled with joy.

At the end of the day, her husband, Bin, comes home. He knows. He holds Pella as she sobs into his shoulder, and then goes outside to face the moonlight. He buries his head in his rough and calloused hands and sheds his own tears, in private. He must be strong for his wife, and for his new daughter. They must never see him cry.

Pella gazes upon the wrinkled face of her sleeping daughter. Bin comes back inside and through their grief, they admire the little creature that was spared.

They decide to name her Nadia. It means _hope._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Lullabies and Envious Eyes

The years drag on. Nadia is a fussy, difficult baby who soon grows into a wiry, active child. Her arms and legs are too long for her skinny little body. Her coarse brown hair is bleached auburn by the burning desert sun. Her eyes are sharp and dark, framed by bushy eyebrows. Her prominent nose seems out of place on her soft, childlike face. She never settles down, running wild in the streets, splashing in the mud pits while her mother toils away, making pottery. She is loud and defiant, spirited if you will. She gets many a paddling from both her father and the overseer, who is greatly annoyed by her rowdy antics.

When Nadia is three, Pella has another baby, a girl. This baby is an accident, as Bin and Pella swore they would never have another child. There is barely enough food to go around as it is, and they still live in fear of the family being torn apart once again. But they love this little creature, whom they name Erith. Unlike Nadia, Erith is a sound sleeper, a good eater. She is quiet and affectionate, and has wide, sparkling green eyes. As Erith's hair starts to come in, Pella is delighted to see that it is jet black and curly, just like her own. Even at a very young age, Erith is strikingly beautiful.

Nadia becomes fiercely attached to Erith. She can't quite pronounce "Erith", so she calls her "Iffy". She carries the baby around, showing her off to anyone who will stop and look. Nadia doesn't play much with the other children, instead she focuses on her precious baby sister. The two become inseparable.

Hard work takes its toll on the young slave family. While still beautiful, Pella begins to develop wrinkles across her cheeks. There are always dark circles under her eyes, and her hands are warped from her fingers being broken many times. Bin's wiry hair grows gray, and his once muscular frame is reduced to that of a frail older man. He comes home every night overworked and exhausted, but still manages a hug for his daughters and a kiss for Pella.

In the evenings, Bin sings and Pella twirls around the room with Erith on her hip. Nadia stomps up and down and claps her hands, giggling. They eat a humble meal of fish and dates, then it's time for the little ones to be put to bed.

Pella kneels over her daughters and tucks them in. Erith coos and reaches for her mother. Nadia tugs on Pella's sleeve. "Can you sing us the song?"

The young mother smiles. "Alright my little butterflies." she says softly as she pulls the toddlers onto her lap, rocking them back and worth.

_Remember the days of harmony,_

_Lay your head down, upon me now._

_Hold my hand,_

_Dream again,_

_Believe again._

_We'll sail away,_

_To a long forgotten place._

_You'll always be safe,_

_In my arms._

_Let go of your fears,_

_Dry away your tears,_

_I'll always be here._

_And every day, I'll think of you,_

_My dear, and pray._

_Hold on now, this moment's ours._

_Hold on to me tonight..._

Nadia looks up at her mother with a look of utter adoration and smiles. Erith buries her head in her mother's breast. "Time for bed girls." Pella whispers. She tucks the children back in and gives them each a tender kiss on the cheek.

While their parents toil away during the day, the two young children play together, sometimes wandering over to the courtyard of the master's mansion. Rabiah sits in the shade, attended to by her handmaidens. With sharp dark eyes she watches the two girls play. At first she notices the older child, a scrawny, rather homely girl of about 5. But her eyes wander to the giggling toddler. A beautiful little girl, ebony curls and big emerald eyes. A perfect baby.

She places a hand on her own sunken abdomen. For years she and Kek have tried to have a child, with no success. Rabiah was barren, her womb permanently uninhabited. This was a cause of bitter conflict between the couple. Kek needed an heir, which Rabiah could never provide. The fact that the two hated each other didn't help the situation. However, leaving Rabiah would mean leaving the riches bestowed upon them by her family. So they stayed together, silently sulking in their unspoken misery.

As she watches the little girl, Rabiah feels a pang of jealousy. Why did her slaves, her lowly, ignorant, inbred, heathen slaves, manage to produce healthy, beautiful children? She was far superior to them, yet they had something she could never have: a family.

Her thin lips curl into a sneer of disgust. The envy within her morphs into resentment. 'If I can't have it, then I can only hate it.' she thinks to herself. She holds up her mirror, admiring her makeup-caked features and elaborate jewelry. "She will never compare." she says out loud.

"Mistress Rabiah?" asks one of her handmaidens, confused.

"Nothing." mutters Rabiah, annoyed at herself. She motions to her guard. "Send those children away, they're being disruptive."

And with that, the girls are sent back home and out of Rabiah's conscience.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Unfinished Life

_Three years later._

On this sweltering summer day, the desert sun shows no mercy. Sweat drips from the slaves' overworked bodies. They toil away, building endless monuments and shrines to the gods so dear to the Egyptians, yet meaningless in the eyes of the Hebrews. They pound mud into crude pots, cook lavish meals for their masters, relentlessly clean and tend to the household tasks.

Meanwhile, Kek plays a game of senet with some of his comrades. His dark eyes dart across the game board, analyzing every move. His long, ring clad fingers rap against the table as he contemplates the game. Kek is well known for his cool, cunning demeanor, whether in the court of Pharaoh, in battle, or at home. His friends don't stand a chance of winning against him.

Rabiah lounges on a chaise, having her nails filed by the handmaidens. Her look of perpetual boredom graces her face, and she whines about the heat, oblivious to the fact that there's nothing anyone can do about it. She dramatically sighs and throws back her head, and her handmaidens exchange a look of utter disgust.

Back outdoors, Bin drags heavy stone blocks behind him. He winces with pain as his muscles pull, and beads of perspiration drip from his forehead down to his beard. Pella and several of the other slave women are busy handing tools to the workers, climbing up the fragile, aging scaffolding to do so. The women are aware of the danger that they are in, but they are so accustomed to it that it seems rather trivial. Pella laughs with the other women, trying to lighten the mood.

"This heat is unbearable!" exclaims a small, wiry woman named Dorit.

Pella leans in and smiles. With her headscarf, she gently wipes away the sweat from Dorit's forehead. "Our bodies have given up on us." she says with a laugh, "But we must keep going. Just think of tonight, when you're at home with family. When Bin and I come home each night, our girls' faces just light up."

"My babies are almost grown now. My oldest son is going to be married." says Dorit. "Enjoy them while they're small, they get even more unruly with age, believe it or not!" The two women laugh as they continue to climb up the rickety scaffolding. "How old are the girls now?" inquires Dorit.

"Nadia is 8 now, and Erith is 5. They get bigger and more beautiful each day. We are so blessed." Pella pauses for a moment, and sighs. "Though I often wonder how our lives would have played out if our baby boy hadn't been taken from us..." Tears well in Pella's eyes, but she wipes them away with a free hand. "But I know he's safe in the arms of God, and one day we'll meet again."

As the two women reach the top of the scaffolding, they stop for a moment. "I still say, nothing beats the view from up here." says Dorit.

"I agree." chimes in Pella.

Suddenly the women hear a crack. Their hearts stop.

Without a word, Pella shoves Dorit up onto a stable brick. Dorit manages to pull herself up, then whips around to grab Pella. But she is too late.

Pella screams as the scaffolding collapses into itself. A cloud of dust obscures the view of what has just happened.

"Pella, no! Somebody help her!" shrieks Dorit. Commotion ensues. Everyone drops what they are doing and rushes to the site of the accident. A crowd of concerned slaves forms around the dusty rubble.

"Some poor thing was up there." mutters someone.

Bin elbows his way through the crowd. "Who said Pella?" he shouts, the panic in his voice clearly audible. He rummages through the rubble, then stops short. "Oh no..." he whispers.

She is somewhat hidden by the rubble and dust, but is definitely recognizable. Her legs are splayed out, broken. Her arms lay by her face, which is covered by her long hair. Her red headscarf is a few feet away, tangled up in shards of wood. Bin drops to his knees and shakes his wife's shoulders. "Pella, can you hear me?" he shrieks, his voice suddenly almost as high as a boy's. He brushes the hair away, revealing her face.

A trickle of dark red blood rolls from her open mouth. Her eyes are open and blankly staring ahead. She is gone.

Bin clasps the dead woman's hand and gently kisses it. He reaches over and picks up her headscarf, clutching it between his fingers. His breathing becomes shallow and labored. A few undistinguishable syllables escape his lips, then his voice cracks, but he stops himself from crying. He gets up and walks away without saying a word.

Nadia, who had heard the commotion, runs past him and through the crowd. She kneels next to Pella's body and violently shakes her. "Mother, wake up!" she cries. "Please, you've got to wake up!"

An elderly woman places a hand on Nadia's shoulder. "Your mother is gone darling."

The eight year old girl looks up, tears in her eyes. "She can't be dead!" she shrieks. The child throws herself over her mother's corpse and sobs. "Please come back..." she gasps.

A second child's voice rings through the air. "Mama?" It's little Erith, toddling towards the site of the accident, curls bouncing up and down. A man scoops her up and carries her away before she can see anything.

The taskmaster approaches and the crowd quickly begins to disperse. "Come on, it's just another accident. Move it people, get back to work!" He attempts to pry Nadia away from the body. Nadia, in turn, spits in his face. "I won't leave her!" she screams through tears.

Angered, the taskmaster smacks Nadia across the face and drags the struggling, screaming child away.

The slaves begin to clear the rubble, and one of the men lifts up Pella's body. The sun is setting over the desert horizon, and the oppressive heat is finally beginning to recede.

Pella was just another slave. Her life was insignificant and her death meant nothing to the ones who owned her. Yet Pella was an extraordinary individual. She loved without fear, she gave everything she had to help others. She was blind to her own suffering. She fought to save her son, and she treasured her surviving children. Pella cherished Bin, and stood by him in good times and bad. The way she sang to and played with her daughters, the gentle affection she gave her husband. The unwavering kindness she showed to all she met. Pella was an angel, shining brightly in the darkness of the Hebrew's plight.

And now she was gone.

These thoughts fly through the slaves' weary minds, and they gaze into the blood red sunset as Pella is carried away to be buried in the desert. Their voices rise in a haunting melody.

_Listen, she breathes no more,_

_She's in a better place now._

_Her suffering may be over,_

_Still we wonder just how,_

_How this world can be so cruel._

_A broken hearted man,_

_Motherless little ones._

_Return her to the sands,_

_Beneath the unforgiving sun._

_So many dreams unrealized,_

_So many pieces broken._

_So many hopes tossed aside,_

_Three peoples' lives have been undone._

_How long must we play this game?_

_What more must we do?_

_We'll never forget her name,_

_Goodbye Pella, God bless you._

_She has been lost forever,_

_Loving mother and young wife._

_All we can do is remember,_

_This forsaken unfinished life._

At the end of the day, Bin sits on the floor of the family's shack. He runs the headscarf through his fingers, over and over. He is numb, almost catatonic, as the day's events play in his head, again and again. He is in a cold sweat, shivering despite the heat. He is broken, both in mind and in spirit. Nothing can or will ever repair him. He loved Pella, she was his everything. And now she was gone.

Outside the shack, Nadia angrily throws stones at the wall. She watches as they make tiny dents, and listens to the thud they make as they hit the ground. She kicks at the sand, creating a cloud of brown dust, surrounding her like a shield. For once, Nadia feels like she has control over something. She smiles at first, but her smile slowly fades along with the daylight. She throws her head to the sky and gazes up, eyes burning with tears.

"How could You let her die?" she whispers.

And with that, Nadia collapses, sobbing with the realization that she is just a lost little girl without her mother. She buries her face in her dirty hands, and her tears turn the dirt into muddy water. Nadia was the kind of child that never cried. Not unless you took something away from her...

"Nadia?" A small voice comes to the crying girl's attention. She looks up and sees Erith, who has been forgotten in all the commotion of the day. She runs to her big sister and throws her little arms around her. She looks at Nadia's tearstained face and smiles. "I'll kiss the sad away!" she says as she gently pecks Nadia's cheek.

Nadia wipes away her tears and holds Erith close. "It's alright." whispers Nadia, trying to comfort herself as well as soothe her little sister. "I'll be okay."

Then Erith looks up at her with those big green eyes, so full of innocence. "Is Mama coming back?" she asks.

Nadia sighs. "Not anymore."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Erith's Hope

Life goes on. The sands of the desert shift and change, the Nile runs deep and strong. The sky remains as wide and endless as ever. Monuments rise from nothingness. Slaves live and die without question. The aristocrats live pampered lives of luxury. With each passing season, life morphs into a strange and new stage, whether for good or for bad.

Bin was destroyed by his wife's death. The once vibrant and loving man was now distant and distracted. He almost never speaks. He ignores his daughters completely. He breaks his body, pushing it to unfair limits as he works. His mind is already gone. At night, he paces back and forth in front of his house for hours. He grows older and frailer, more and more sickly. People begin to make bets as to when he will drop dead. It's apparent that his soul has fled, and there is only a rotting shell of a man left behind.

Nadia grows tall and thin, awkward and lanky, not unlike a colt. Her coarse auburn hair grows long and untamed. She is as stubborn as a mule, and works just as hard as one. However, she hates the taskmasters with a passion. She manages to get into all kinds of trouble, which results in many brutal whippings. Nadia's back is covered with an array of scars, each one telling the story of a small rebellion. She doesn't get along with many people, and doesn't have any friends other than her sister. She is largely responsible for her entire family. She is haunted by her mother's death and the fact that her father is a ghost of his former self. But she never shows her anguish. She tells herself to be strong, to never reveal just how broken she really is.

The sweet little Erith blossoms into a desert beauty. Her lips grow ruby red and plump, her body fills out into sensual curves. Despite her striking, womanly beauty, Erith remains quite childlike and naive. Nadia does her best to shelter the young girl, doing extra strenuous labor so that Erith may be a simple house slave. On the rare occasion that Erith needs a whipping, Nadia volunteers to take her place. Erith has inherited her mother's unwavering kindness and love of music and children. She is loving and gentle to all she meets, she plays with the little slave children and sings for the slaves' entertainment. Her voice is high and clear, her emerald eyes are large and dazzling, framed by thick black lashes. She catches the attention of many men, whom Nadia promptly chases away. The two sisters, although very different, love each other more than anything. Nothing could come between them.

Kek matures into dignified and revered general. He has a flawless reputation in the court of Pharaoh, he charms all he meets with his wit and charisma. He is growing into an older man, yet ages fairly gracefully, retaining his sharp features. Yet as he gets older, he becomes more and more concerned with the fact that he doesn't have an heir. He and Rabiah have given up on having a child, and this has pulled apart their marriage even more. They haven't made love in years. They barely talk. They lead separate lives in private, yet put on a show in public to uphold their reputation as a powerful couple. Kek grows more bitter and cynical, secretly wishing death upon his wife. He takes his frustration out on others, torturing and killing prisoners of war. Inside this seemingly likable man is an increasingly dark soul.

Rabiah continues to be incredibly vain and selfish. As she ages, she becomes more and more obsessed with her diminishing looks. She carries around a mirror constantly, inspecting her graying hair and wrinkles with disgust. She is hateful and mean to her servants, punishing them for even the smallest of errors. Although she lives a luxurious life, she always is greedy for more riches. She drapes herself in ornate jewelry, has lavish banquets, and decorates her house with expensive and stunning artifacts from all over the world. Insecure about her aging body, she directs her hatred at her young servants, one in particular.

Erith.

Rabiah _hates _Erith. At just 14, Erith is more beautiful than Rabiah has ever been or ever will be. Even though she wears simple cotton dresses and not a trace of makeup, Erith glows in comparison to Rabiah. Erith is young, beautiful, kind, and full of hope. Everything Rabiah is not. Jealousy takes hold whenever Erith is near Rabiah, and she is unfairly cruel to the young girl. She hides Erith away from her husband and all other men, out of fear that they will find Erith more beautiful than her.

Nadia is aware of Rabiah's cruelty towards Erith, and tries to stand up for her sister whenever she can. She has to protect Erith, to make certain that no harm comes to her.

She's all Nadia has.

The cool desert night gives way to day, and golden rays of early morning sunlight dance down from the heavens. Creatures begin to stir from their slumber, ready to greet the day.

Nadia opens her eyes and yawns. She slowly lifts herself up off of the simple bed that she shares with her sister, and blinks until her eyes adjust to the light. Her hair is wild and matted, but she simply brushes it aside, she was never one to care about her looks. Nadia turns to see Erith, still asleep, nestled in the blanket, a picture of peaceful beauty. She watches as Erith's chest rises and falls, and listens to her snoring softly. Sleep was one of Erith's great loves, the girl had slept like a rock ever since she was born.

The older sister walks around the room to stretch her lanky legs. Bin is already gone, as usual. Nadia sighs. Her poor father had nothing to live for except for mindlessly working. He avoided his family whenever he could, seeing them brought him too much pain.

Nadia goes outside and fetches a bucket of water. She breathes in the morning air, brimming with the scent of mud, sweat, and a trace of sweet lotus. Quietly, she creeps back into the shack, puts down the bucket, and crawls back into bed with her sister, who is just beginning to wake up.

Here, in the comfort of her own home, Nadia can show her playful side. "Iffy..." she teases, using her childhood name for Erith. She plays with Erith's curls and blows in her ear. "I know you're awake...". A small smirk spreads across Erith's face, but she keeps her eyes tightly closed. Nadia smiles to herself. "I know what will wake you up..." she says, before relentlessly tickling her younger sister. Erith erupts into giggles, and her brilliant green eyes fly open.

"Seriously Nadia?" she gasps between giggles, "Every day you do this!"

"Of course I do. I'm the mature one you know." Nadia says with an eye roll. "Come on, let's have breakfast.".

The sisters split the loaf of bread that had been given to them as a breakfast ration last night. Bin had not eaten breakfast, as was the norm. Nadia worries for him, since he seems to grow thinner and frailer each day. After they are finished eating, Nadia and Erith give each other a quick yet meaningful hug.

"Take care of yourself today." Nadia whispers as she heads out the door.

And so the family goes about their days separately.

Bin struggles as he punishes his body by doing backbreaking work. He never asks for help, he only drinks when he absolutely has to. He doesn't say a word, only occasionally crying out when the strain becomes too much. The taskmasters take advantage of his silence and passivity by assigning him the most difficult jobs, which he does with total compliance. He doesn't even question them.

On the other hand, Nadia talks back to the taskmasters. She works hard as she stacks bricks for hours on end, yet whenever a taskmaster begins berating or beating a slave, Nadia either spits at them or throws dust in their face. "Don't treat them like animals! They are your fellow man!" she yells, proud of herself and her work.

Of course, there are repercussions for her actions. The whip cracks across her back multiple times, grazing her many previous wounds, some old and some new.

"I'd like to beat you into the ground and watch you die slow and painfully, you little bitch!" hisses the taskmaster as he whips Nadia. Unfortunately for him, only Kek can order a slave put to death, since they are his own property. Nadia bites her lip and laughs instead of cries, which greatly aggravates the taskmaster. The whip bears down on her once again.

Meanwhile, Erith dutifully cleans in the mansion, dusting the decorations and sweeping the stone floors. She actively avoids Rabiah whenever she can, and when they do cross paths, Rabiah sneers at Erith and orders her to do more odious chores. Still, Erith keeps her dignity and does as she is told. Erith goes about her day full of hope that life will get better. She has spent her whole life as a slave, yet her faith and her family is all she needs. Hope has the key to Erith's happiness. The hours pass slowly, and the sky turns from a clear blue to a hazy indigo. Finished with her chores, Erith slips away to the garden. She plucks a lavender lotus flower and tucks it behind her ear, smiling to herself as she gazes up at the ivory moon peeking through the palm trees. The moon rising from the darkness reminds her once again of her most prized possession: hope. She hugs her arms to herself and twirls, slowly spinning in circles as she raises her voice.

_Lucky moon, hear my call,_

_In the silence of the night._

_It's always darkest before the dawn,_

_But I have hope, it'll be alright._

_Hope, gives us wings to fly, if we choose to use them well._

_The light illuminates our eyes, secrets that we live to tell._

_We'll fly away from sorrow, towards the promises of tomorrow._

_There's always another day,_

_Never too far away,_

_When there's hope._

_The days may drag on and on, you feel as if pain lasts forever._

_But tomorrow will always come, the darkness will soon be over._

_Hope, is an everlasting beam, streaming down from heaven above._

_Hope, is the sweetest dream, filling broken hearts with love._

_So dry your tearstained face, feel hope's warm embrace._

_Keep wishing on lucky moons,_

_Tomorrow will be here soon,_

_If you have hope…_

Erith smiles one last time at her lucky moon, then hurries home to her humble dwelling.

Back at the family's shack Bin sits in the corner, mindlessly scratching the dirt floor with a stick. Exhausted, his hands shake, his bony ribcage rises and falls with each ragged breath. Nadia, tired and reeking of sweat, comes in from her day of work. She looks at her father and manages a hello for him.

He doesn't even glance up at her.

She sighs sadly and turns away, avoiding the presence of the poor man who had been dead to the world for the past 9 years. He never said hello, he never said anything anymore.

Erith enters the room and Nadia forgets her melancholia as soon as she sees her beloved sister.

"How was your day?" asks Erith sweetly as she takes off her shawl.

"Awful. And yours?"

Erith laughs. "Probably not quite as awful, but still not good. But at least it's over."

"Of course." Nadia smiles and says "Well, I absolutely reek. What do you say we take a quick bath before bed?"

"Sounds good to me." The girls loved their moonlight baths in the Nile. They laughed, splashed, gossiped, and tried to avoid crocodiles. It was one of their rare and private but undeniably precious moments together.

And so the sisters walk down to a quiet bank of the river. They shed their sweat-drenched and dirty cotton dresses and wade through the reeds and into the cool water. Basking in the moonlit glow, they wet their faces and hair, using a rag to scrub their bodies. The sound of their splashing and laughter floats into the night air, and into the awareness of a man passing by.

Kek, who had been out for an evening stroll, is strangely intrigued by the shrill laughter. He figures that it must be slaves, but still he is curious to see the source of those high voices. One to leap at any chance to go incognito, Kek sneaks down the pathway towards the riverbank. He slips through the reeds as slyly as a crocodile zeroing in on its prey. And then he sees them.

Two young women, naked, splashing around in the water. The taller one is thin, plain, and has a rather boyish figure, but the younger girl! Succulent curves, a tantalizingly delicious form, the body of a goddess. Kek watches as she splashes water upon herself, as the droplets slide down her moonlit skin, as she shakes her forest of wet curls. The moonlight casts beautiful shadows on the tanned and voluptuous girl, making her look mysterious, unattainable and even more desirable.

His heartbeat quickens, and Kek feels something within him that he hasn't felt since he was a young man: lust. As he gazes at the beauty before him, his head flies with thoughts of this young girl, this Hebrew, this forbidden fruit ripe for the taking. He can't believe that he, a dignified Egyptian aristocrat with many years of experience, was so helplessly entranced by a lowly slave girl. But here she was, in all of glory, right before him. He inadvertently licks his lips as she wades into more shallow water, revealing even more of her perfect body.

He had to have her. No matter the cost. He smiles to himself as he hides in the reeds, lecherously leering at her. Already he begins to concoct a plan, to find out who she was, to meet her. She was a young girl, probably shallow and stupid. Kek, although he was getting older, was still quite charming. He would seduce her, steal her away, she would submit to him. She would be his and his alone, his slave in every sense of the word.

In all these years of unhappy marriage to Rabiah, Kek had never been tempted to have an affair, mainly due to Kek's common sense and contained demeanor. But this girl was different. She was…intoxicating. He tells himself that he will have her and enjoy the passions of the flesh once more.

Kek slowly backs out of the reeds and begins to walk away. He laughs to himself as he approaches his manor.

"_She will be mine, no matter the cost."_


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: A Midnight Meeting

The next day, Bin drags his weary bones out into the sun as usual, without uttering a single word. The girls follow, taking a quick walk around the impoverished Hebrew village before they set off to work. Erith practically glides ahead of her sister, while Nadia is still miserably sore from the previous day of beatings and backbreaking work. Still, she keeps her chin up and tries to make the best of her unfortunate situation.

The sun is gentle as a child in the early morning, and the sunlight plays upon the flowing water of the river. Even the shambles that are the village itself take on a warm, almost welcoming glow. The only sounds are the cheerful whistling of birds and the thudding footsteps of the sisters.

They pass by a group of Hebrew boys, probably in their late teens. The boys look Erith up and down, scanning her body like hawks, and a few begin catcalling and whistling. Erith blushes and turns to her older sister for help. She was used to this kind of behavior, but it still made the sensitive Erith greatly upset.

Nadia leans in close to Erith and whispers "Go on ahead and go to work. I'll deal with this." She squeezes Erith's hand and gently sends her away. Nadia then turns to face the boys, who are already laughing at her reaction to their behavior.

"How many times have I told you to leave her alone! She's still a child!" Nadia angrily scoffs.

"She'll be a woman soon enough. You know you can't protect her forever." says a greasy young man with a pathetic excuse for a beard.

Nadia folds her arms across her chest. That is exactly what she doesn't want to hear and more or less refuses to acknowledge, despite herself. "Don't you have anything better to do?"

"Aw, come on Nadia, you know you're just jealous." whines a rather slovenly fellow sitting on a crate.

The young woman straightens herself up and looks the boy in the eye. "Jealous of what?" she says indignantly.

"No man would ever want you, you ugly bitch." he says with a sneer. "You've got the nose of a mule and the body of a rotten plank!" The others join in, comparing Nadia to an array of unappealing objects, trying their best to tear her down.

She keeps herself composed at first, yet in her heart she knows that what they're saying is true. No boy had ever even approached her. She didn't know if it was her looks or her troublesome personality, but there was something _off _about her. There always had been. There always would be.

Nadia spits at them and kicks dirt at them, her infamous defense mechanism. "I wouldn't even _want _to be seen with the likes of you!" she yells before storming away, off to her day of thankless labor.

It was a hard life, and at times a very lonely one. But Nadia did her best to survive.

Within the white walls of the mansion, Rabiah lies in bed, apparently because the gentle early morning heat is too much for her. Kek paces the halls of the house, searching for the creature he had beheld last night. All through the night, his thoughts had been of her and her only. He had never felt this obsessive lust before, but he enjoyed it immensely. His pursuit of her was like a game, a game he could easily win.

And finally, he locates her. The beautiful creature with the wild curls and the sculpted form. She is unaware of his presence, dusting a vase, softly coughing as some of the dirt gets in her mouth.

"Good morning." he says quietly but assertively.

She whirls around, surprised. Her emerald eyes don't immediately recognize him, as she has never seen him in person before, but she glances at his jewelry and fine clothes and assumes who he is.

"You must be Master Kek." An awkward curtsy follows.

He smiles. "Indeed I am. And who might you be?"

Unsure why this man, the master, is even interested in talking to her, she stammers "I'm Erith."

"Erith.", repeats Kek, the word tasting sweet as red wine. "Such a pretty name."

"Thank you sir."

He takes a step closer. "You must have lovely parents, of course."

Erith, always eager to talk about her family, quickly says, "Well, my mother died 9 years ago, my father has never…really been all there, but my sister Nadia is my best friend. She's smart and so brave, and we love each other dearly."

Kek, more interested in the way Erith's shirt tightens over her young breasts than of her family, simply nods.

Erith, so innocently oblivious to Kek's actions, offers to tell him about her house.

And so, Kek milks all the information he needs about the girl: where she lives, when and where she works, the fact that Nadia is fiercely protective of her. When she excuses herself to go back to her work, he smiles and watches her as she walks away, skirt swishing, hips rocking back and forth.

Tonight it would all begin. He would send for her, secretly, in the dead of the night. The beginning of his torrid affair with the Hebrew slave girl. It was scandalous, yes, but it immensely appealed to Kek. After years of being bound to Rabiah, Kek craved the touch of another woman, even if the woman in question was a lowly, teenage Hebrew. She was forbidden perfection, and she _would _be his.

Erith walks back home after a long day, singing to herself under her breath. She smiles as a flock of white birds fly overhead, and as the little Hebrew children are called in from play. A few of them recognize Erith, who frequently played with and cared for them, and they wave excitedly. Erith waves back, then hurries to her own humble dwelling, still smiling to herself.

When Erith arrives at the one-room shack, Bin is the only person there. He sits in the corner, staring at the wall, as usual. Erith doesn't really remember him being any other way. There were the tales Nadia told, of him singing and laughing and hugging his children. Even Erith had some vague memories of that happy man, but they were far too distant to matter much. Erith loves and pities her poor father, but she feels powerless to help him. She offers him water, and he feebly reaches, takes, and drinks, without saying a word or even making eye contact with Erith.

He can't. All he sees when he looks at his daughters, especially Erith, is Pella. Being with them is almost too painful to bear. Instead he lives in his own bleak, washed out world, away from the rest of humanity and the memories they bring.

There is a commotion outside, and Erith pops her head out of the door to see a taskmaster dragging a thrashing Nadia towards the shack. He slams her into the wall, and pins her flailing arms behind her back.

"I look forward to whipping you again tomorrow." he hisses into her ear as he presses her head against the rough wall.

Nadia laughs. "I look forward to making you look like an ignorant ass again tomorrow." she declares through gritted teeth.

The angered taskmaster twists her arm, which drives a shriek yelp from Nadia, then releases her to the ground. "You just don't learn, do you?"

Nadia cradles her aching arm for a moment, then looks up and smirks defiantly. "I guess not."

The irritated taskmaster groans and storms off, and Erith runs out and quickly hugs her older sister. Nadia smiles.

"I saw what he did to you, are you alright?" Erith asks, concern in her voice.

Nadia sighs. "I'm fine, I've had worse." She shakily gets to her feet and runs her hand through Erith's curls. "Everything's okay, I promise." she says, and the two sisters go inside for the night.

Nadia falls asleep almost immediately, as she was completely exhausted. Erith stays awake a bit longer, watching Bin drift off to sleep alone in his corner, counting the stars in the sky. Eventually, her eyelids grow droopy and she too falls asleep, safely nestled right next to Nadia.

Erith awakes with a jolt. She opens her eyes to see the dark form of a Hebrew man, softly shaking her shoulder.

"Are you Erith?" he asks, his voice a hushed whisper.

"Yes, I am." mutters Erith as she groggily rubs her eyes.

"You're needed in the garden immediately. Master's orders."

"Why? It's the middle of the night."

The man sighs. "As I said, Master's orders."

Erith begrudgingly complies, and sets off to the garden, wondering what on earth Kek wants from her at this hour. The night air is surprisingly cool and brisk, and Erith wishes that she had brought her shawl. She enters the garden, a stately place chocked full of exotic plants and statuary. No one is there.

Erith waits for a few minutes, growing rather impatient. Her eyes dart around the moonlit garden, taking in its quiet midnight beauty.

"Erith." A deep, vaguely familiar male voice echoes behind the young girl.

She slowly turns around to face Kek, who is standing tall, arms folded across his chest, bearing a smug smile. His eyes scan the girl up and down, enjoying the way her thin nightgown clings to her frame.

"Master Kek," says Erith with a swooping curtsy, as she has been trained to do, "What can I do for you sir? It's awfully late."

"It is rather late." he remarks, his voice cool and collected. He strides over to Erith, who nervously wrings her hands in her skirt. Kek pauses for a moment, taking in the luscious beauty before him.

Erith looks up, confused. "What do you want from me sir?"

"Simply to be with you, my child." he says. He reaches for her arm, running his fingers across her smooth skin, her rounded elbow, her dainty hand. His jet black eyes fixate upon her face, her shimmering green eyes. "You are so beautiful." he whispers, his voice low.

The young girl shyly smiles and looks at her feet. "Thank you." she mutters, unsure of how to feel about Kek's comment.

"Are you still a maiden?" he hisses as he interlaces his fingers with hers.

Erith feels the warmth of a blush. "Yes sir, I am."

Kek smiles with satisfaction. "I knew you were a good girl." he whispers as he takes a handful of Erith's ebony curls to his nose, inhaling her essence.

Erith, who is growing increasingly uncomfortable, stammers "Sir, what are you doing?"

"Enjoying you." he says as he releases her hair. His hand moves up to caress her chin. Erith's worried eyes dart across Kek's face, trying to make sense of his disturbing actions.

In the master bedroom of the mansion, Rabiah is awakened from her dreams. She groans and rolls over, only to realize Kek is gone. Annoyed and somewhat suspicious, she pulls on her dressing gown and sets off to find him. Her bony feet pad across the floor as she wanders down the dark halls of the mansion. She searches for several minutes until she comes to the large window overlooking the garden. In the moonlight, she sees the outlines of two figures. Curious, she carefully climbs out of the window and sneaks closer. It is then that she realizes the identities of the two figures. Kek and Erith. She hears him cooing over the girl, she watches intently as his hands wander over Erith's succulent body. She furrows her brow in disgust, yet she can't look away.

"Perfection." whispers Kek as he runs his hands along Erith's waist, then under her breasts. The young girl awkwardly stands there, avoiding the older man's gaze. She doesn't exactly understand what he is doing, but it is beginning to frighten her.

"Sir…it's late…I beg your pardon…but I really must be going." she mutters. Kek lecherously smiles once again, and pulls the girl close to his body. To Erith's horror, she feels something hard pressing against her leg.

"Not before this." he says as he surveys Erith's plump red lips. He grabs a handful of her hair and smashes his burning lips against hers. Shocked, Erith goes numb and doesn't resist as Kek pulls her even closer and forces his tongue into her mouth.

Hidden in the shadows, Rabiah slams her hand over her mouth as she watches her husband passionately kiss the slave girl. Red-hot hatred boils within her, not for Kek, but for Erith. Surely the little slut had seduced her husband and was trying to steal him away from her! Absolutely furious, Rabiah rushes inside so she won't have to witness any more of the disgusting playing out before her.

After what seems like an eternity, Kek finally pulls away from Erith. He wipes the spittle from his lips as Erith stares at him, open mouthed and wide eyed. Once again, he smiles, satisfied with himself.

"I…I have to go now." stammers Erith as she turns and runs just as fast as she can, out of the garden of discomfort and back to her shack. Once she is within sight of the dwelling, she stops to catch her breath and to gather her racing thoughts.

He had admired her, touched her, kissed her…and she didn't know what to think. She had been waiting years for her first kiss. She had always assumed that if a man kissed you, then he loved you. But there was something other than love in his actions, something that made Erith feel sick. Besides, Kek was a married man and even older than her father. What did he want with her? The more Erith thinks about it, the more confused she grows. She creeps back inside and lies in bed, trying to make sense of what just happened.

Kek takes a stroll through the garden to collect his thoughts. He thinks of how soft Erith's skin was, how she aroused him, how helpless she felt in his arms. He smirks to himself as he continues walking, his mind swimming with lustful fantasies of the voluptuous yet innocent Erith.

Inside the master bedroom, Rabiah lights a candle and inspects her face in the mirror. She will never again be as young and beautiful as Erith. She frowns as she traces the fine lines on her face. Rage-laced jealousy is swelling within her. She knows that she's hated the oh-so-perfect Erith since the girl was a toddler, and now she_ despises _her. Even though Rabiah doesn't truly care for Kek, he still belongs to her. And Erith was trying to steal him away, she was sure of it. Rabiah runs her fingers along her own skin, lost in thought. Then it comes to her…the only way to fix this was to eliminate Erith altogether.

And with that, Rabiah's envious thoughts begin to morph into something far more sinister. She smiles as she reaches into a drawer to pull out the bejeweled dagger she was given for her wedding. She kisses the cool steel blade. "I will make her suffer in ways she's never imagined." Rabiah hoarsely whispers. She hurriedly puts away the knife and retreats back to her empty bed, smiling to herself. She closes her eyes, insidious ideas dancing in her head.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Blood In The Nile

The next morning, the girls and their father set off to work once again. The lives of these slaves are unforgiving and unbound by barriers of time. Every day is like the one before, and their miserable worlds are an endless loop spinning off into eternity. But the events transpiring right beneath their awareness would change their lives forever.

Bin's empty graveyard of a mind is numb and gray. He has an occasional passing thought of his girls, those creatures he all but ignored. He still cares deeply about Nadia and Erith, he just is no longer able to express his love for them. They exist simply as lights in his desolate world, a warm and inviting glow, so close yet so distant. The poor man wants so desperately to reach them and love them again, but painful memories serve as a rigid and impenetrable barrier, keeping him away from his family forever.

His daughters still love him. Nadia has beautiful and cherished memories of her father before Pella's death. And Erith, while she barely remembers that happy man, still cares for him as she does with everyone, without judgement.

On a deeper level, Nadia blames herself for the way Bin is now, yet she also resents him, there is a searing sense of disgust that eats away at the girl's conscience and very soul. She feels that he abandoned her and her sister when they needed him the most. All those terrible nights when they were scared, or hungry, or missing their mother, he simply turned away; and she felt a guilt-ridden rage boil within her. Did he even still truly exist as a father, or even as a human? Nadia could spend a lifetime torturing herself with such questions, but she tries not to think about them, ignoring them the same way her father ignores everything else.

As she works, Erith replays the events of last night. Still hopelessly confused, the naïve young girl ponders Kek's actions for quite some time. She avoids the hateful presence of Rabiah more than ever, but she doesn't need to. Rabiah is secluded in her room, away from prying eyes.

The jealous noblewoman paces back and forth, plotting her revenge on Erith. Her long green gown trails behind her, swishing with every fluid movement. She rapidly mumbles to herself under her breath, and occasionally pauses and smiles. Although shallow and vain, Rabiah is not a dumb woman, and she knows the powers of manipulation and deceit. Her plan was perfect. She briefly considers the morality of it all, but manages to convince herself that her actions will be justified.

Erith had been tormenting her for far too long, making Rabiah insanely envious by simply living. And now, she had done the unthinkable and sneakily seduced Kek. Did the girl have no shame, stealing her mistress's husband? _Yes, _Rabiah thinks to herself, _I must be rid of her. Revenge shall be mine._

She glides to her mirror and admires the knife in her hand. Then, in her silky-smooth, low and surprisingly melodic voice, she begins to sing.

_I want to drown her, asphyxiate her._

_I'll no mercy, I swear I'll break her._

_She's something beautiful,_

_A sweet affliction._

_She's young and sensuous, she's his addiction._

_And I will see the death of her._

_Yes, I will see the death of her._

_Bury her, I can't wait to bury her._

_I can't wait to strangle her,_

_And I'll gladly murder her!_

_Tonight there will be blood in the Nile!_

_Tonight there will be blood in the Nile!_

_My envy will end with the twist of a knife,_

_Gone will be she who has stolen my life!_

_Tonight there will be blood in the Nile!_

_Never before have I been rejected,_

_Never before have I been neglected._

_She may seduce him, but soon she will see._

_She cannot steal him, away from me._

_Bury her, I can't wait to bury her._

_I can't wait to strangle her,_

_And I'll gladly murder her!_

_Tonight there will be blood in the Nile!_

_Tonight there will be blood in the Nile!_

_My envy will end with the twist of a knife,_

_Gone will be she who has stolen my life!_

_Tonight there will be blood in the Nile!_

_Yes, I will see the death of her._

_Bury her, I can't wait to bury her._

_I can't wait to strangle her,_

_And I'll gladly murder her!_

_Tonight there will be blood in the Nile!_

_Tonight there will be blood in the Nile!_

_My envy will end with the twist of a knife,_

_Gone will be she who has stolen my life!_

_Tonight there will be blood in the Nile!_

She smiles to herself once more. After tonight, Erith will never invade Rabiah's conscience again.

Then the night comes, drawing a dark curtain across the broad Egyptian sky. The Hebrew slaves come in from work, the nobles and guards retire for the night, and before long everyone drifts away to sleep. All except Rabiah.

She rises from bed, careful not to wake Kek, and removes her knife from its hiding place. Silently she lurks down the dark and empty halls of the mansion, and out into the pale moonlight. A wayward breeze blows through the palms, and teases some of Rabiah's graying black hair out of its tight bun. Barefoot, she creeps through the gardens, which on this night looks strangely ominous. As she wanders into the Hebrew village, her razor-sharp eyes spot the shack in which her victim lies asleep. She has watched Erith step out of this particular shack before, all freshness and beauty. She pauses for a moment to reconsider what she is about to do. _I must do this. She will pay for what she's done._ Rabiah thinks to herself, throwing any second thoughts into the midnight wind. She enters the tiny dwelling.

Tonight the moon is full, and there is just enough light dancing through the windows to illuminate the room. Rabiah notices a frail older man curled up in one corner, only a thin blanket covering his bony frame. Her gaze moves to the other part of the room. Two young women lay on a simple mat, sharing a blanket. Rabiah draws closer and notices that one of the girls has long auburn hair, and the other has familiar bouncy black curls. Knife in hand, she shakes the curly-haired girl.

Erith mumbles "Nadia?" and opens her eyes. She is face to face with Rabiah. Before Erith has a chance to react, the noblewoman brandishes her knife.

"You make a sound," she whispers as she motions to the sleeping Nadia, "and I'll kill both of you."

Erith turns and looks at her sister for a moment and silently nods, tears already welling in her eyes. Rabiah motions for Erith to get up, and she carefully gets out of bed. Nadia groans and rolls over, and begins to mutter something. Quickly grabbing Erith's arm, Rabiah pulls her out into the moonlight. She puts the knife to the girl's throat.

"We're going to walk down to the river. Keep quiet or I'll make this even more painful. I saw what you did with my husband last night, and I'm making damned sure you never do it again."

"But…" Erith whimpers. Rabiah presses the knife closer to Erith's neck.

"I told you to keep quiet, you little slut." Rabiah snaps as she drags the trembling girl along, nearing the riverbank. The terrified Erith doesn't make another sound.

Nadia, still half asleep, feels around for her precious sister's familiar touch. When she realizes that she's gone, she bolts upright, panicked, and surveys the room. There is no sign of Erith, and it's not like her to wander off in the middle of the night. Nadia jumps out of bed and rushes out the door, heartbeat quickening with worry. She begins her search, desperately scanning the darkened Hebrew village.

Rabiah and Erith reach the bank of the Nile, and they wade in, the cool water surrounding their legs. In any other situation, Rabiah wouldn't even think of walking around in dirty water, but she is so caught up in her scheme that she doesn't even care. She stops and pulls Erith to face her. The young girl is horrified when she sees the crazed, almost demonic look in Rabiah's black eyes, which were usually simply filled with disgust or boredom. She tightens her grip on Erith's arm and brings the silver blade up to the girl's tearstained face.

"I'm going to enjoy this." She hisses. "First, I'm going to carve up your pretty little face until you're just as ugly as your whorish heart. Then the real fun will begin, and _if _they ever find your body, it will look like you were ravaged by a crocodile." She laughs and knots her fingers in Erith's hair. "And no one will ever have to know the truth!" Poor Erith begins to cry freely now, her lower lip quivering.

And out of the corner of her eye, Erith sees her sister approaching the riverbank. Unable to keep silent any longer, she shrieks "Nadia! Please help!"

Rabiah whips her head around to see Nadia, who is angrily charging towards them, screaming "Don't touch her!" The noblewoman pulls in the struggling Erith and attempts to stab her, but only manages to nick her arm. Despite the fact that it is only a small wound, the young girl cries out as blood begins to seep from the cut.

Nadia grabs Rabiah's arm and Erith's shoulder and pulls them apart, ripping out a chunk of Erith's hair in the process. Erith falls backwards and splashes into the shallow water, howling in pain.

Instead of striking her intended victim again, Rabiah focuses on fighting off the infuriated Nadia. Although Nadia is fairly strong after years of hard labor, she is also exhausted from a day of work. Rabiah is by no means physically powerful, but in her rage she has a certain, insanity-fueled strength. Rabiah grabs Nadia's long hair and yanks her around, viciously kicking her in the abdomen as she does so. After several moments of this, Nadia manages to get close enough to her attacker to bite her arm, and Rabiah yelps and releases Nadia's hair. The Hebrew girl then attempts to grab the knife, but Rabiah, recovered from the bite, shoves Nadia away, then kicks her down. She wields the knife, and laughs at the fallen young woman. "You really think you can save her, don't you?"

Nadia begins to lift herself up "I can sure as hell try." She snarls. Rabiah silences her with a blow to the face, cracking Nadia's nose. The older woman grabs Nadia by the throat and jerks her upright. She slices her cheek with the knife and tightens her grip on the squirming, gasping girl's throat. Blood seeps from Nadia's broken nose and a fresh trail flows down her cheek.

"It's over now, and…" Rabiah's voice trails off, and the sound of Erith's cries finally become more noticeable. Rabiah's lips curl into a twisted smile. "But of course, I should kill your slutty little sister in front of you first." Without warning, she stabs Nadia in the shoulder and lets go of her; then turns to the petrified Erith, who is helpless, weeping. She freezes in terror as she sees Rabiah approaching with her weapon's blade glistening in the moonlight and a deranged, murderous smile plastered across her face.

It is life or death, a final, desperate moment. The older Hebrew sister realizes this, and a wave of fiery, urgent courage washes over the injured girl. Nadia, despite the brutal pain in her shoulder, manages to pull herself up and tackles Rabiah from behind. The two fall face-forward into the water, and a sharp cry emanates from Rabiah's lips.

Shakily, Nadia gets to her feet. Rabiah remains face down in the water. The water surrounding the woman begins to turn a swirling dark red.

She had fallen on the knife.

The faraway voices of guards and Hebrew slaves, awakened by the splashing and screams, ring through the night air. They grow louder with each passing moment.

Erith, clutching her injured arm, gets up and rushes over to her trembling sister. Nadia's face and white dress are stained with blood, her hair wild and matted, her wide black eyes ablaze. The water surrounding them is the color of red wine. The two young woman stare at the still form of their mistress, who only a few moments ago was alive with a fierce and unstoppable rage. Now she was motionless in the water, bathing in her own blood, with only Nadia and Erith to blame.

They already know that they are doomed.

The voices are so close now, only a few paces away.

The sisters look up and their gazes meet. Their eyes are filled with pure, unspeakable horror.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Butterfly

"Stop right there!" Guards and taskmasters, angry to have been awakened from their slumber, rush at the trembling girls. They wade into the murky river, violently splashing up water as they approach the scene before them. A few Hebrew slaves watch from the bankside, cautiously curious as to what has just transpired.

The men jerk to a halt when they see Mistress Rabiah, clothed in her familiar green gown, face down in the now crimson water. Her body is still, silent, bobbing with the gentle tides; and her greying dark hair has been freed from its tight bun, and is fanned out around her head. They look up to see Erith, whimpering and clutching her injured arm, tears streaming down her face. And then there is Nadia, breathing heavily, wild eyed and covered in blood. Both sisters seem to be completely frozen, although it is uncertain if it is because of horror, fear, or satisfaction.

There is a long silence as the men take in the macabre scene before them.

Then there is chaos. Shouts echo through the midnight air as two guards seize Nadia and Erith, and the largest of the taskmasters lifts up Rabiah. Several men rush to the manor to rouse Kek. The ferocious, albeit weakened Nadia springs back into action, thrashing about, screaming "Let me explain! It's not what it looks like!" at the top of her lungs. Another guard comes to help restrain her, the troublemaking girl that they knew all too well. Erith's whimpers turn to pitiful wails, and she goes limp in her captor's arms. The infuriated guards drag the girls to the shore.

The taskmaster lays Rabiah down on the riverbank, and puts two fingers to her neck, feeling for a sign of life. He cringes at the knife lodged just beneath her left breast, but his feelings quickly turn from horror to disgusted rage. Rabiah has no pulse.

"She's dead." He grimly announces. The Hebrew onlookers gasp, although their hearts do a secret, guilty little dance of glee.

"These girls are murderesses!" shouts a guard.

"No!" shrieks Nadia, "she fell on the knife! I swear!" She struggles in the iron grip of the two guards, but one of them slams his fist across her face. The young woman yelps in pain.

"We shall see," he growls, "what Master Kek thinks of your lies. You and your sister are surely sentenced to die."

Upon hearing this, Erith erupts into another wave of sobs.

Nadia once again pleads with the men. "If I must die, so be it; but please, please don't hurt my sister!" Another smack is delivered to her face, and the salty taste of blood floods Nadia's mouth.

By now, Kek has arrived on the scene, his guards at his side. A small smirk flits across his lips when he sees the lifeless body of his long-resented wife, but he quickly returns to a somber expression.

"Sir, I regret to inform you that your wife is dead. We found these two Hebrews standing beside her body, and they await your sentence."

Kek glances over the bloodstained, fuming Nadia, but his gaze wanders over to the quivering Erith. He smiles when he sees her, remembering their meeting the night before, but Erith quickly looks down when she sees him.

"The taller of the two," he says, motioning to Nadia, "she appears to have been…more involved."

Nadia glares at him, rage burning in her eyes. "Master," she says, her voice low, "you wife tried to murder my sister. She had a knife, I pushed her down, and she fell."

A sarcastic smirk appears across the master's face. "A likely story."

"I know that I am doomed to die," says Nadia, "but I beg of you, spare Erith. She did nothing wrong."

Erith's tender heart drops, and although small and weak, she makes a sudden jerk and frees herself from the guard's grip. Hysterical, she throws herself at Kek's feet. "Don't hurt Nadia, please!" she wails as she wraps her trembling hands in the hem of Kek's robe. "Please!"

Kek looks down at the distraught girl with tears running down her sweet young face. She was so beautiful when she cried…

He could kill Nadia, he had every right to, but considering the obvious loyalty between the two sisters, he was left with another appealing option; one that would surely make him appear gentler in the eyes of Erith, and one that would hurt Nadia even more than the blade of a sword.

He sighs. "Very well. The Hebrews may live…but," he points to Nadia, "I never want to see the older girl again. She now belongs to the gentlemen restraining her, you may do as you please with her. Take her away!"

The guards, shocked and confused at the usually cold Kek's sudden "mercy", begin to drag Nadia away. She struggles, despite her wounds, she squirms, and her limbs go flailing. "Don't take me away, please! I need to stay with my sister!" shrieks the older Hebrew girl. She jerks her head around to face her master. "Damn you Kek!"

He laughs. "Such disrespect, although I might expect it from this one. Silence her before I…change my mind." One of the guards pulls out a scarf, and gags Nadia. The other pulls off the rope around his waist and ties her hands together. The only sound she makes after that are angry, muffled shouts as she is pulled off into the night.

The sobbing Erith reaches for her sister. "Nadia please don't go! Don't leave me!" she cries. She starts to get up, but Kek grabs her wrist, tightening his ring-clad fingers around it. The girl looks up at him with puzzled, teary eyes.

"She must go, my dear," he says, his deep voice smooth, "but _you _are staying with me."

As they drag the enraged young woman out of Kek's estate and into the streets, the two guards argue as to what they are going to do with her.

"I sure as hell don't want her, she's an ugly creature with a bad temper to boot." Scoffs the first guard.

"We could just kill her and be done with her." The second guard suggests as the Hebrew drags her knees in an unsuccessful attempt to halt their journey.

"No," says the first guard, "as much as I hate to say it, it would be a waste. We should just sell her as quickly as possible, that way she's off our hands and we make a profit. We'll split the money and call it good. Deal?"

"Deal," the second guard nods in agreement, "but who would buy her? She's a crazy bitch covered in her mistress's blood."

"We'll clean her up, make up a story, and sell her to the palace. They won't pay much for a girl like her, but hey, it's still money."

And so one guard hurries home and back, bringing an old tunic with him. After swearing to her that they'll kill her if she tries to run, they drag the reluctant Nadia to the river and lead her into the water, dunking her under, scrubbing the blood off of her. They lead her out of the water, then rip off her stained dress and Nadia doesn't even blush. There is no shame in her veins, only a boiling hatred, and plans to escape once inside the palace and out of sight. The guards quickly redress her in the shapeless, itchy tunic and drag her back into the streets, towards the palace.

Magnificent stone columns greet the trio, and even the dark of the night, the royal palace is strikingly beautiful. Palm trees rustle in the nighttime wind, and the clever moon plays tricks upon the eyes, mischievously casting light in odd places, giving the illusion that the mighty building is eerily glowing.

They are let in without too much fuss by the bored night-shift guards, and manage to concoct a story about who they were and who she was. A bargain transpires in the shadows of the stunning architecture. Under hushed voices, coins are exchanged, and the unhappy and bound Hebrew girl is passed through several sets of hands. Her eyes dart across the darkened faces of her captors, trying her best to analyze them, to assess their danger. Nervous, she chews on her gag, yearning more than ever to breathe free again.

_I must be brave _she thinks to herself, despite her skipping heart.

Finally, she is shoved into the hands of the jailer, a short, gruff middle-aged man. He sighs upon seeing her and shakes his head, then first puts proper shackles on her wrists. "You belong to us now, you're staying down here for the rest of the night, in the morning everything will be sorted out." He then removes her gag. Nadia glares at him.

"I'm not staying here, I have had enough misery for tonight." She snarls through gritted teeth.

The jailer sighs again and leads her to her cell. "You'd better get used to it, that's the way things run around here." He stops at the door, opens it, and pulls her in. "And you shouldn't try any little plans to escape." He says as he shackles her to the wall, which Nadia attempts to pull away from. "Look, I don't want to see anything bad happen to you, so you'd better get your attitude under control young lady." He turns to leave. "I'll see you in the morning."

And Nadia is all alone.

She yanks at her chains in a desperate attempt to free herself, to no avail. After several minutes of this, she falls to her back, frustrated. She is painfully reminded of the agony in her shoulder, of her smashed nose and face, of the pains from where Rabiah kicked her. But most of all, of the pain in her heart.

Her beloved Erith was alone without her, out there in the cruel world. They might never see each other again. That alone breaks Nadia's spirit and invades her conscience. She hugs her knees to her chest and rocks back in forth, in an attempt to ease her physical pain and her mental state of anguish.

Nadia was never one to feel sorry for herself. Although hot-headed and tough, she had a sensitivity about her, although she seldom showed it. She usually gritted her teeth and plowed through the trials and tribulations that her difficult life threw at her. But here, in the darkened and lonely prison cell, cast off from all she has held dear, she feels…fearful, unsure of her fate. She hasn't truly felt these emotions since the death of her mother, nine years ago, and now she only wants the same thing – for her mother to hold her, to make everything alright.

She slowly pulls herself up into a sitting position and closes her eyes. In a small, scared voice, so unlike her usual husky one, she begins to sing.

_Mother, are you there? I'm all alone again._

_Mother, please I'm scared, I want to hold your hand._

_Remember all our dreams? Remember all our plans?_

_I'm more fragile than I seem, I know you understand._

_You went through such pain, your life was undone._

_You lived as a slave, you lost your poor son._

_Still you loved us so much, your heart was so pure._

_You flew far away, away from this world._

_I remember that day, I think I was eight._

_It was the last time, I saw your sweet face._

_We never said goodbye, it happened so soon._

_I ran to your side, and sobbed over you._

_But it was too late, you were already gone._

_I held Erith close, I sang her your song._

_She barely remembers you, it tears me apart._

_She looks so much like you, and has your kind heart._

_Daddy isn't the same, since you've been gone._

_He won't say a word, he's always alone._

_I wish that he loved me, and loved Erith too._

_But he always ignores us, we remind him of you…_

_Mother, I'll always be strong, I'll always stand tall._

_I'll take care of Erith, we'll get through it all._

_But Mother I miss you, I need you tonight._

_I wish you could hold me, and make everything right._

_Because Mother, I dream,_

_Mother, I try._

_Mother, I scream,_

_Mother, I cry._

_Mother, I love,_

_Mother, I live._

_Mother, I hope,_

_Mother, I give._

_All that I do, I do just for you._

_You were taken away, and I'll never know why._

_But Mother, I'll always be your butterfly…_

And with that, for the first time in far too long, Nadia buries her bruised, battered face in her hands and sobs.


End file.
